Annoyance

Kirigakure, relatively weak in overall strength yet home to many elite assassins, was the perfect choice for guarding against enemy assassinations.

Only those in the same line of work could better understand each other's methods and take more effective precautions.

Kirigakure had also gone all out for this unprecedented Shinobi Allied Forces operation.

Not only had the Fifth Mizukage, Mei Terumi, come personally, but Chojuro, the village's rising young talent most highly regarded by his fellow villagers, had accompanied her as well.

A host of elite troops guarded the daimyo, nominally the most powerful figures in the shinobi world, as if facing a great enemy.

Although Sasuke Uchiha was one of the most important guards, he was not like those disposable extras outside. Instead, he played a role similar to a shadow dancer, sitting inside a carriage identical to the Land of Fire daimyo's so that any attackers would be unable to tell which one was the real target.

"I thought something important had come up. Turns out I only came back to serve as a bodyguard."

Protecting a daimyo—especially the Land of Fire's daimyo—was a mission that even jonin with decades of experience might never encounter.

In peacetime, such a high-level commission would practically be a lucrative vacation.

But with the Fourth Shinobi World War about to begin, a daimyo was the perfect target for an attack.

The danger of protecting a daimyo was no longer what it had been in the past; the risks of the mission were completely disproportionate to its rank.

To confuse the enemy, Sasuke Uchiha had not used disguises like the Transformation Technique, which could easily leave chakra traces. Instead, he relied on traditional makeup and costume techniques to make himself resemble the daimyo more closely.

Dressed in a luxurious robe, wearing a ceremonial